Doctor

1
Tommy Doctor
Professor Olivia Rines
UWRT 1101-002
26 January 2015

Genre Analysis

What comes to mind when you think of different genres? Is it a kind of music or
maybe a type of movie? Have you ever considered cereal boxes to be a genre? Well yes,
cereal boxes are a type of genre. The genre of cereal boxes is not one most people
normally think of when it comes to genre but it most certainly is one. Youll soon find
out how Capn Crunch, Post Shredded Wheat, and Frosted Flakes are all considered a

Caitlin 2/9/2015 10:32 AM

Comment [1]: You may want to address
the definition of genre in the first paragraph
in order to help the reader understand what
it is that you are trying to inform them of.

family of the cereal box genre. But in order for this to be true, it must have a few
important characteristics. The main ingredients in making a cereal box are the designs
you put on the box, the characters you use, the slogans you have, and figuring out which
type of person you are intending to persuade to buy your cereal. Once you figure out all
of these credentials, you have yourself a cereal box.
Genre is such a large and major topic with so many different variations and examples of
it. But genre is a class or category of artistic endeavor having a particular or similar
form, content, or technique. When most people think of genre, they think of the normal
movie or book genres such as horror, action, comedy, etc. But what people dont know is
that genre goes so much more in-depth than that. Nobody ever thinks of a cereal box as
being its own genre, but it has to be. Everything in this world has a genre and it just takes

Caitlin 2/9/2015 10:32 AM

Comment [2]: This doesnt seem like a
complete thought, maybe it should be
reworded in order to make better sense.

Doctor 2
a little bit of thinking to understand that and to understand what genre everything is. For
example, horror is a genre because there are multiple pieces of work such as movies,
television shows, or books that are related to each other. So all of these movies, television
show, and books get placed into this same category, which would be horror, and that is
how a genre comes about.
For this same reason is why cereal boxes is considered its own separate genre,
because it needs one. There are to many different kinds of cereals in this world and
through grocery stores to even count nowadays. They all have the same purpose as well.
Every cereal box is there for a few specific reasons. One obviously reason is to provide
the person buying this cereal with important information of what they are going to be
buying. This includes what the cereal actually is, what it looks like, the flavor of it, and in
most cases they present this to look the most appealing as possible. Another purpose of
the cereal box is to persuade the buyer into buying their product and not someone elses.
The article Gender and Form of Cereal Box Characters: Different Medium, Same
Disparity said We would argue that product packaging is similar to other forms of
advertising, in that it is designed to educate consumers about the product and encourage
them to purchase it. (K. Black, J. Marola, A Littman, W.Neace, 882). This works in a
number of different ways. For adults, in most cases, they are interested in a more healthy
choice when picking cereals. You will notice in most cereal aisles, the adult cereals are
placed higher on the shelves and the children cereals are placed lower. This is all a
sales tactic. So when a person looking for cereal is looking for a healthy choice, they just
have to look right ahead and all of their cereals are there. This is where the cereal box
with the best design, slogan, or picture may come into affect. For example, Post Shredded

Caitlin 2/9/2015 10:35 AM

Comment [3]: Make sure your description
of genre fits what was explained in class. I
feel like this is how I thought of genres
before we discussed it but now it has a
different meaning to me. Maybe you could
incorporate a quote from one of the articles
we read about genre so that you are
explaining it effectively and that would also
allow you to use another source.
Caitlin 2/9/2015 10:36 AM
Comment [4]: Does it need one or has it
become one since the creation of the first
few cereal boxes?

Doctor 3
Wheat is a healthier cereal than Capn Crunch, and its box will tell you its the healthier
choice. It is known to be a healthier pick and help with weight loss and they will tell you
that on the front of the box. So adults looking for this type of cereal will choose this
cereal over a cereal with a cartoon on it and a toy inside that doesnt say it will help you
lose weight.
When it comes to children cereals, this becomes the complete opposite. The
cereals are placed lower on the shelves so when a kid runs down the aisle, they see the
Capn Crunch with the toy inside and the hidden treasure map on the back and not the
Post Shredded Wheat that will help you lose weight. There are so many different kinds of
cereal boxes but they all have the exact same purpose and that is why cereal boxes has its
own specific genre. A height of 48 inches encompasses the largest cross-section of

Caitlin 2/9/2015 10:38 AM

Comment [5]: I think you made a great
point here that I have never really put much
thought into.

children possible, approximating the eye-level vantage of both an average 8-year old and
a younger child sitting in a shopping cart seat. was a line from the article Visual
communication to children in the supermarket context: Health protective or exploitive?
The authors also went on to say Visual and textual information was coded from 2,755
cereal boxes observed in a representative sample of 15 Toronto, Ontario supermarkets.
Child-targeted marketing variables created from these data include the presence of
spokes-characters on cereal boxes, child-oriented box colors, child-themed cereal shapes,
on box child incentives, and child-reachable shelf location. (B. Berry, T. McMullen,
334). With all the different kinds of cereal boxes, it needs to have its own specific genre.
This genre is used in many different ways including for how it is used in trying to draw
the attention of the children and for many other reasons.

Caitlin 2/9/2015 10:07 AM

Comment [6]: You may want to consider
rewording this sentence. I had to reread it in
order to understand what you were trying
to say.

Doctor 4
Capn Crunch is a very popular childrens cereal and it has been for a while now.
It is in the category of the cereal box genre that would more than likely try to focus on
children. The box is big and bright and the main character of the cereal is a Capn
Crunch. There is always a different kind of activity to do on the back of the box or some
sort of prize inside that draws attention to childrens eyes that make them beg their
parents to buy it for them. There are multiple different flavors as well so the themes and
characters never end.
Another cereal is Post Shredded Wheat. It is not the most exciting cereal out there
and it really is not intended to be. It is shredded wheat and it is not everyones favorite

Caitlin 2/9/2015 9:52 AM

Comment [7]: You may want to include
more about the question, How well does
each text fit ithe genre?

cereal but it is a healthy cereal. Just like all other cereal boxes though, the box itself still
trys to persuade its buyers to buy their cereal and not a different kind. It does this with a
picture of the cereal that looks very appealing and tasteful and bright colors and also has
little punch lines like Helps Lose Weight or 9 out of 10 Doctors Recommend It to
help sell their product and get people to buy their cereal. This type of cereal box is a lot
different from one like Capn Crunch but they both have the same genre, which are cereal
boxes because they are related and are intending to do the same thing.
Frosted Flakes is also another popular cereal on the shelves today. But whats
different about Frosted Flakes is that it does not focus on any specific type of person.
Even though the character of the cereal is a big energetic Tiger named Tony the Tiger, it

Caitlin 2/9/2015 9:55 AM

Comment [8]: I think the wording in this
sentence is a little bit off. Hopefully by now
your reader is aware that the genre is cereal
boxes so maybe something like While this
type of cereal box isnt very similar to one of
Capn Crunch, they still both effectively fit
into the same genre of cereal boxes due to
their similar intentions.

also focuses on the health of its consumers and how it is a good product to buy. It has
many different characteristics that attract multiple different people. Its character and
bright box attracts the children. Its slogan, Theyre Great! attracts anybody because
everyone knows that one. Then its healthy punch lines and nutritional facts all over the

Caitlin 2/9/2015 10:06 AM

Comment [9]: How does everyone know
that? You may want to include more detail
here. For instance, Frosted Flakes
commercials dont appear on every TV
channel, especially those aimed specifically
towards adults. This being the case, they
might not have ever heard this slogan.

Doctor 5
box attract the older buyers who care about that stuff. These three examples are all apart
of the same genre of cereal boxes.
Genre is such a complex topic and sometimes a hard thing to comprehend;
especially when it comes to cereal boxes as being a genre. You would never think about
cereal boxes as being a genre but then when you look into it and think about genre itself,

Caitlin 2/9/2015 10:00 AM

Comment [10]: This may come across a
bit bias towards older people. I know
younger kids dont generally care about the
ingredients but the wording makes it almost
sound like you are criticizing older people
for caring about that stuff. Maybe change
the wording from that stuff to those who
are more persuaded buy the nutritional
benefits or something along that line.

it has to be one. There are so many different kinds of cereals and they all have the same
purpose and that is why cereal boxes it is a genre.

Works Cited
Berry, Brent, and Taralyn McMullen. "Visual Communication To Children In The
Supermarket Context: Health Protective Or Exploitive?" Agriculture and Human
Values (2008): 333-48. Springer Link. Springer Science Business Media. Web. 25

Caitlin 2/9/2015 10:03 AM

Comment [11]: The wording in this
sentence seems a bit off as well. It seems to
be very point blank. Maybe you should
reword this last sentence in order to make it
sound more intellectual since it is the
closing sentence of your paper.

Caitlin 2/9/2015 10:39 AM

Comment [12]: Make sure the works
cited is on a separate page and is formatted
correctly (double spaced).

Doctor 6
Jan. 2015.
<http://download.springer.com/static/pdf/466/art%3A10.1007%2Fs10460-00791100.pdf?auth66=1422223370_c3cc67657c6c086d15b1de41d9d00c09&ext=.pdf>.
Black, Katherine A., Jennifer A. Marola, Anne I. Littman, Joan C. Chrisler, and William
P. Neace. "Gender And Form Of Cereal Box Characters: Different Medium, Same
Disparity." Sex Roles (2009): 882-89. Springer Link. Springer Science Business
Media. Web. 25 Jan. 2015.
<http://download.springer.com/static/pdf/968/art%3A10.1007%2Fs11199-0089579z.pdf?auth66=1422220452_8702d97143f81d00bcdc8fd0386700a7&ext=.pdf>.